Polling Principal and Research Director

@evangelpenumaka

Evangel (she/her/hers) is the Polling Principal and Research Director at Data for Progress. She supports polling and data analysis across various projects. She holds a Ph.D. from UCLA in political science with a focus on race and ethnicity, political attitudes, and Asian-American political behavior. In her spare time she is an avid amateur runner.

Lead Analyst and Omnibus Manager

Isa (he/him/his) is a lead analyst and the Omnibus Manager at Data for Progress. He supports the polling team across various projects, and works on surveys and polling analysis. He recently graduated from NYU with a degree in quantitative economics and political science, and he is passionate about using data to support progressive policy. In his free time, Isa enjoys reading fantasy and cooking.

Lead Analyst

@Brian_C_Burton

Brian (he/him/his) is a lead analyst at Data for Progress. Prior to DFP, he worked as an Analyst at Priorities USA, where he studied the results of creative focus tests to drive strategic media planning and measured the in-field performances of ads. Before that, he was a statistician at the U.S. Antitrust Division, where he researched the effects of mergers and helped investigate anticompetitive behavior across several different industries. Brian graduated from American University in 2016 with degrees in international development and economics.

Senior Analyst

@AnikaDandekar

Anika (she/her/hers) is a senior analyst at Data for Progress and is passionate about using polling to advance economic justice. Previously, she did grassroots organizing work for Black Voters Matter and Children Now, and has lobbied in Sacramento on behalf of the ACLU. Anika graduated from UC San Diego with degrees in economics and public policy, with highest honors for the latter. Her paper, Politics of Antitrust, won the Sanford Lakoff Award for the “Most Outstanding Honors Thesis in Political Science”. She enjoys hiking, painting, panicking about the state of American democracy, and trying new foods.

Senior Analyst

@KEBHANLEY

Kevin (he/him/his) is a senior analyst at Data for Progress. Prior to DFP, he worked as a research associate at Accountable.US where his research focused on conservative legal networks. Before that, he was a research associate at Global Strategy Group. Kevin graduated from New York University in 2020 with a degree in political science.

Senior Analyst

Kirby (she/her/hers) is a senior analyst at Data for Progress. She graduated from Dartmouth College in 2021 with a degree in quantitative social science and history. In college, she worked at Dartmouth’s Digital Humanities Lab and also contributed to the Mapping Police Violence project. Kirby enjoys cooking, dog spotting, and using data to build her fantasy football team each fall.

Senior Analyst

@tenten_wins

Tenneth (he/him/his) is a senior analyst at Data for Progress. Before joining DFP, he worked as a Graduate Research Assistant at CUNY Baruch College where he helped his former professor with his research on the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and how successful the U.S federal government has been in implementing it since the law was enacted. Tenneth received both his master’s degree in International Affairs with a focus on Trade Policy and Global Economic Governance and his bachelor’s degree in Public Affairs at CUNY Baruch College. A born New Yorker, Tenneth is a die-hard fan of the New York Knicks and catches every game he can.

Polling Intern

Marissa (she/her/hers) is a polling intern with Data for Progress. Before joining DFP, Marissa was part of the research team at Campus Vote Project and developed the Student Voting Study; a multi-institutional survey study aiming to identify the motivators and barriers to student voting on college campuses. Marissa recently graduated from the University of Florida with dual degrees in statistics and political science, as well as a certificate in political campaigning. During her time at the University of Florida, Marissa volunteered frequently within the Gainesville community and worked within the Housing and Residence Life Department to promote a safe, inclusive environment for all students. Born and raised in South Florida, Marissa is an avid lover of sunny days, going to the beach, spending time with her two puppies, and road trips! 

Senior Climate Strategist

@GraceAdcox

Grace (she/her/hers) is the Senior Climate Strategist at Data for Progress. At DFP, she leads climate polling and message testing research, using data to support movement partners to advance climate action and the deployment of community-first climate infrastructure. Prior to joining the climate team at DFP, Grace served as Assistant Director of the ROCCA Lab at Vanderbilt University, coordinating multidisciplinary research projects on political violence and collective action problems. A Nashville native, Grace attended Vanderbilt for both her master’s degree in international relations and her bachelor’s degree in political science and Asian studies.

Senior Climate and Energy Program Associate

@cathwfraser.bsky.social

Catherine (she/her/hers) is the Senior Climate and Energy Program Associate at Data for Progress. She supports DFP’s work to advance a progressive approach to climate policy. Catherine holds a master’s degree in public policy from Georgetown University and a bachelor’s degree in environmental policy from Colby College. Catherine previously lived in Texas, working at the intersection of petrochemical pollution, climate change, and environmental justice. Catherine is an avid fan of DC’s Capital Bikeshare and the Washington Spirit.

Climate and Energy Program Intern

Eva Brungard (she/her) is the Climate and Energy Program Intern at Data for Progress. Previously, she interned in clean energy and transportation policy, at the Zero Emission Transportation Association, Tesla, NHTSA, and most recently as an Energy Industry Analyst at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Currently, she is a Master of Public Policy student at Duke University, concentrating on energy and environmental policy. She is from Carmel, Indiana and has a bachelor’s degree in Policy Analysis from Indiana University. Outside of work, Eva enjoys working out, socializing with friends, and cheering on the Duke Blue Devils!

Tech Director

@erin_c_thomas

Erin (she/her/hers) is the Tech Director at Data for Progress. Combining her previous experience at policy firms, design studios, and tech startups, Erin uses web development as a tool to make complex data accessible and understandable. She holds a degree in political science from Macalester College. She currently lives in Chicago.

Survey Methodology Engineer

Cecilia (she/her/hers) is a Methodology Engineer at Data for Progress. She has worked in data analysis focused on policy evaluation and guiding programmatic decision making in a variety of government sectors. She holds a degree in economics and mathematics from the University of Maryland, College Park. In her free time she enjoys biking and drawing.

Senior Software Engineer

Jamie (he/him/his) is a senior software engineer at Data for Progress. At his previous workplace, Amazon, he helped organize the 2019 workplace walk-out with Amazon Employees for Climate Justice, which led to Jeff Bezos’s announcement of the Climate Pledge. Jamie holds a BA in German – with a concentration in German Philosophy and Intellectual History – from Princeton University. He grew up on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State and now lives in Brooklyn. Outside of work, Jamie enjoys creative writing, playing violin in his string quartet, salsa dancing, cooking, and trying new fountain pen inks.

Communications Director

@robtodaro

Rob (he/him/his) is the Communications Director at Data for Progress. Before joining DFP, Rob worked at The Trevor Project, managing the comms strategy for the organization’s research and advocacy work related to LGBTQ youth mental health. Prior to that, he started his career in public service by working for Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives and the NYC Council. Rob holds a bachelor’s degree in political communication from GW’s School of Media & Public Affairs. He can usually be found listening to pop music and bopping around North Brooklyn (and any other restaurants and queer spaces the L train will take him to).

Press Secretary

@abby_springs

Abby (she/her/hers) is the Press Secretary at Data for Progress. In 2022, she graduated from the University of Texas at Austin, where she studied government and political communication. While interning at the Texas Legislature and a local progressive nonprofit, she helped advocate for voting rights, abortion access, and fixing the energy grid. Before joining DFP, she also worked as a speechwriting intern for West Wing Writers. When she’s not online, you can find her kayaking, going to concerts, or starting another crochet project even though she hasn’t finished her last one.

Communications Strategist

@LewBlank

Lew (he/him/his) is a communications strategist for Data for Progress. He holds a Master of Public Affairs from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and bachelor’s degrees in political science and journalism from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. He previously served as campaign manager for Nancy McLean for State Senate. In his free time, Lew enjoys hiking, spending time with friends, playing basketball, and visiting new places.

Communications Intern

William (he/him/his) is a Communications Intern at Data For Progress. Before joining DFP, he was an intern at the American Social History Project at the CUNY Graduate Center. His previous worksites include the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, Hachette Book Group and Teens Take Charge. William is a current student at Columbia University studying history and sociology. Outside of his academics, he is a reporter for the Columbia Daily Spectator and a leader for the Vietnamese Students Association, among other roles. He uses his background in community organizing to support our current movements for educational and racial justice. Born and raised in New York City, William loves to watch horror movies, hang out with his friends, and travel the world!

Finance and Operations Manager

Emma (she/her/hers) is the Finance and Operations Manager at Data for Progress. She graduated from the University of North Texas in 2022 and holds a Bachelor's degree in Political Science. While in college she was an ambassador for several organizations and was a Student Organizer at Battleground Texas, where she registered college students to vote. Emma currently lives in Dallas and enjoys spending time with her loved ones, going on walks in the flat North Texas landscape, and making up her own lyrics to songs.

Senior Advisor

@jasonkatzbrown

Jason (he/him/his) is a senior advisor for Data for Progress, where he created DFP's internal platform for fielding and analyzing surveys. Before joining DFP as CTO in 2020, he was the organizing technology lead on Warren for President, where the team worked under a "SMALL TECH" mural and strove to empower every volunteer and voter in the fight for big, structural change. Jason grew up in Richmond, Calif., graduated with a master's degree in natural language processing from MIT, then worked on translation quality in Google's Tokyo office and international growth at Airbnb.

Senior Advisor

@colinjmcauliffe

Colin (he/him/his) is a senior advisor at Data for Progress. His professional and educational background is in computational solid mechanics. At Data for Progress, Colin researches survey nonresponse, new methods for message testing, and bridging the gap between surveys and real-world issue salience.

Senior Advisor

@johannes_ff

Johannes (he/him/his) is a senior advisor at Data for Progress. He holds a degree in economics from Vanderbilt University. Previously, he worked as an analytics and data engineer for the DNC and on progressive campaigns. Johannes was born in Germany, and enjoys biking and black licorice.

@cescobu

Celina (she/they) is the Senior Resident Fellow for Climate Innovation at Data for Progress, where she leads DFP’s growing work on progressive carbon removal solutions — removing gigatons of past greenhouse gas emissions from the atmosphere by developing equitable, community-engaged, and environmental justice-centered strategies. Celina has worked as a legislative staffer for Senator Cory Booker, policy director for the Center for Environmental Peacebuilding, and consultant to the UN. She co-chairs research consortium Ocean Visions' marine circular bioeconomy taskforce. Celina is concurrently pursuing a PhD in the Emmett Interdisciplinary Program for Environment and Resources at Stanford University, where she is a Knight-Hennessy Scholar. She holds a master's in atmospheric science from Cornell University.

Miles (he/him and they/them) is an Emerging Voices Fellow at Data for Progress focused on Black LGBTQ+ experiences of community across rural spaces in the US South. Miles’ investment in the protection of Black queer joy and well-being has led him to work with organizations such as the All Students Count Coalition, Advocates for Youth, SYMAL, and Whitman Walker Health to advocate against anti-LGBTQ policies and conduct research on health disparities across racial and gender lines in queer populations across the country. Miles is a sociology graduate student at Kent State University and holds a bachelor’s degree in International Affairs and History/Political Science from the University of Pittsburgh.

@AdewaleMaye

Adewale (he/him) is an Emerging Voices Fellow at Data For Progress focused on transit and infrastructure policy, particularly as they pertain to climate and environmental justice. Adewale is passionate about using data to better inform sustainable and progressive solutions to the economy and the environment. With a background in labor economic research, worker-centered advocacy, and grassroot community development, Adewale seeks opportunities both within his work and in his community to empower marginalized communities and dismantle systemic barriers to equity and prosperity. He is also a current graduate student at the George Washington University pursuing his master's in Applied Economics and Data Science.

Anusha (she/her/hers) is an Emerging Voices Fellow at Data For Progress focusing on building climate resilient cities, specifically understanding how cities can implement carbon emission reduction interventions and sustainable food and water systems. Anusha is currently located in the Greater New York City area where she works in admissions at the Columbia University School of Social Work. She holds a bachelor's degree in public health with a minor in education from Bryn Mawr College.

@lexihjones

Alexi (she/hers/her) is an Emerging Voices Fellow at Data For Progress working on criminal justice reform and voter perceptions on policing. Alexi is a public affairs graduate student at The University of Texas at Austin and holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Wesleyan University. Prior to graduate school, Alexi worked as a policy analyst at the Prison Policy Initiative. While at the Prison Policy Initiative she authored national reports about the overuse of jails in the United States, the importance of not excluding people convicted of violent offenses from criminal justice reforms, the rates of correctional control in each state, and the high price of phone calls from jails.

@EllaIsraeli

Ella (she/her/hers) is an Emerging Voices Fellow at Data For Progress working on climate displacement, houselessness post-climate-disaster, and equitable disaster relief. As an organizer and social worker, Ella works to create people-centered, community-driven policy. Driven by the principle of “self-determination for all people in the places they call home,” she has worked in a wide range of fields including anti-Occupation movements in Israel/Palestine, the criminal-legal system, refugee resettlement, and domestic violence advocacy. She is a current member of the Sunrise Movement. Ella holds a B.A. in Government from Wesleyan University and is completing a joint MSW/MSSP from the University of Pennsylvania.